vice verfa; or, in other words, the end is, in all cafes, a reason for the choice of the mean, or means; but the mean, or means, are, in no case, a reason for the choice of the end. But as I fhall have this affair to examine to the bottom in my laft chapter, I fhall fay no more about it in this place.

If the Dr. fhould ftill think, that St. Paul's affirming juftification from the confequences of fin, (ver. 18, 19.) to be by, or through, the righteoufnefs or obedience of Chrift, is favourable to his notion of the facrifice of Chrift, as being the perfect obedience and goodness of his whole life;

it

may be observed, that this apostle, in one of these verses, (viz. ver. 18.) cautions us against thus understanding him, by calling the obedience of Chrift, by, or through, which we are justified, or made righteous, one righteousness, or one act of righteousness, or righteous act, and that as ftanding in contrast, with that one offence, or one act of offence, of Adam, by, or through, which judgment came upon all men to condemnation: for he fays, As by one offence, (îεvòs Tαgarlaualos,) judgment came upon all men to condemnation; fo by one righteousness, (di εvos Sinaiμalos, by one righteous act,) the free gift came upon all men to juftification of life. And as it is St. Paul's defign in the context, L 4

See Mr. Locke in locum.

as

as well as in this verse, to exhibit the contraft between one offenfive act of Adam and the confequences of it to mankind, and one righteous act of Chrift and the confequences of it to mankind, he must, when he mentions the obedience or righteoufness of Chrift without any restriction, be understood to speak of one act of obedience, or one righteous act only; for if he is not fo understood, the contraft, which he is exhibiting, will be loft. And I fincerely wish that the Dr. as he has taken notice of this interpretation, in his notes upon ver. 18. had paid a greater regard to it, because it is a dead weight upon that interpretation which fupports his notion of the facrifice of Chrift, as being the perfect obedience and goodness of his whole life.

The laft text the Dr. mentions, as having fomething in it for his purpose, is, 2 Cor. viii. 9. Ye know the grace (the goodness and love) of our Lord Jefus Chrift, that though he was rich, yet for your fakes he became poor, that ye, through his poverty, might be rich.The thing which the apoftle fpeaks of in thefe words, is, the poor and indigent state of life, in which Chrift was graciously pleased to be placed here on earth, for the good and benefit of mankind. This is the thing which he exprefly mentions; and the only thing which the nature and scope of his difcourfe required to be mentioned. But

he

he doth not fay one word about the facrifice of Chrift, or about its nature and efficacy. If the Dr. thinks he doth; he hath it to prove. And till he has proved it, I must be allowed to think, that this text makes nothing for his purpose.

The conclufion of the Dr's Scripture-
evidence.

§. 21. THE Dr. concludes this long paragraph of fcripture-evidence in the following words, "From all this, it appears, that "the blood of Christ, or that by which he "has bought and redeemed us, is his love "and goodness to men, and his obedience "to God, exercifed indeed through the "whole courfe of his humiliation in this "world, but most eminently exhibited in "his death. His blood is precious, (1 Pet.

i. 19.) And it is precious, not in the fenfe " in which filver and gold, or any other "material thing, is precious, but as it is the "blood of a lamb without spot and blemish: "that is to fay, it is his compleat and spot"lefs righteousness, his humility, goodness, "and obedience to death, which makes his "blood precious in the best and highest "fenfe, and gives his crofs all its worth and efficacy.

A N

ANSWER.

§. 22. IN what refpects the blood of Chrift is precious, and from what it derives its value or worth, I have confidered already; and have nothing further to add, on that head, in this place. And for the reft; the whole proof, which the Dr. has brought from the fcripture, in fupport of that notion of the facrifice of Chrift which he here gives us, has been minutely confidered; and, upon the ftricteft examination, it has been found, I think, that no one part of it amounts to a good proof, or even the shadow of a proof, of the truth of it.

§. 23. HAVING thus difpatched the examination of all the fcripture-evidence, which the Dr. has produced, in the VIII chapter of his Key to the Apoftolic writings, of his notion of Chrift's facrifice, as being the perfect obedience and goodness of his whole life; I now proceed to examine his fcripture illuftrations of it, as they lie before us in the Xth chapter of his Scripture-doctrine of Atonement examined.

§. 24. THESE fcripture-illuftrations are of the analogical kind; a fpecies of illustration, which, though pretty well calculated to confound, and ftop the mouth of an opponent, has been fo far from being of any great

See this same section, §. 2-12. inclufive.

great fervice in explaining and proving fcripture-doctrines, that it has often obfcured, and not feldom mifrepresented them. If any person wants to have an instance of thefe dangerous effects of analogical illuftrations, he may turn over to that part of the late learned and worthy bishop of Durham's Book of Analogy, which relates to the atonement, or facrifice, of Jefus Chrift where he will fee, what havock may be made both of fcripture-doctrine and common-fenfe, by the mere force of analogys. And, I am afraid, that the Dr's analogical illustrations will not, upon trial, be found to have a much better effect upon the fcripture-doctrine concerning that point. But let us proceed to the examination of them.

The Dr's Scripture-illuftrations.

;

§. 25. THE Dr. after having faid, that Chrift's perfect obedience and goodness "was the facrifice which he offered to "God, and which made atonement for the "fin of the world," fubjoins,-So the obe"dience of Abraham was a reafon for be"ftowing bleflings upon his pofterity, Gen. " xxii. 16-18.-xxvi. 4, 5. So Mofes, "and other good men, averted the judg"ments of God by their prayers and righteousness, Exod. xxxii. 30---32.

"Numb.